


Christmas Presents

by Baroness_Blixen



Category: The X-Files
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-02-23
Updated: 2017-02-23
Packaged: 2018-09-26 11:18:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,453
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/9893504
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Baroness_Blixen/pseuds/Baroness_Blixen
Summary: William tries to find the right presents for his new parents.





	

His fingers dance across the delicate surface of the sparkling glass. Will follows the contours of the Christmas animal, a reindeer probably, carefully with his finger. He’s surrounded by all these ornaments, staring at him, waiting for him to buy him. The music here in this shop, like in every one in this mall, is supposed to inspire him to be generous and spend all his money on silly decoration. Mulder told him so.

He doesn’t want to buy them something like this, a trinket, that they can put out every Christmas. Maybe smile at him in remembrance of that first, later second time they celebrated together as a new family. William doesn’t want any of that. He wants to give them something, for lack of a better word, meaningful. A few weeks back, Dana - his new mom - told him that he was the greatest, most beautiful gift she could have asked for. William has heard these words before, when he was young, and they hadn’t meant much. No, he wants to give them a gift, a real one. After all, they really have given him a real gift, a truly magnificent, life changing gift when they gave him a new home. Parents. He is a son, now. He belongs to a family. William smiles, unable to stop his lips from curling upwards, when he thinks of the warm feeling, of knowing that someone will come pick him up from this mall soon. It also reminds him that he doesn’t have time to just stand here, look at funny ornaments, and dream his life away.

He told them he just wanted to look around a bit; though he suspects they know what his real plan is. They seem to know everything about him without even trying. William doesn’t know enough about parents and their children, what they know and how they feel. He lost his first parents when he was eight years old, knowing that he was adopted and always hoping that his real parents would come and just pick him up. Now that wish has come true, William has been too happy these last few months to come up with new ideas. He should have paid more attention, he thinks. If he had, maybe this wouldn’t be so difficult.

“Can I help you, young man?” A well-dressed sales woman approaches William with a set smile. He can tell she doesn’t want to help him, not really. Her hands, folded in front of her stomach, seem to want to drag him away from here. Scared he might destroy something, or worse even: steal.

“Uhm, I’m looking for a gift. For my… uhm, my parents.” Again, he can’t help the grin. He has parents! William knows that his woman, who is just doing her job, couldn’t even begin to understand. There is a woman with bright hair, the same one William used to have when he was younger, that only a few years ago turned into this darker, brownish-red color. A woman who has his eyes. There is a man, too, with his nose (and realization that he will grow into it), his chin and the same kind of laugh. There are people; his parents. The word refuses to lose its meaning, burns intensely in his growing body. It’s so warm that he begins to sweat under his soft winter coat. Dana bought it for him in October. He’s grown since then, but she seemed to anticipate that; it fits him perfectly now in the places where it seemed too big two months ago.

“What do they like?” The sugary sweet voice of the saleswoman hurts William’s ears.

“I don’t really… know.”

“Your parents must have hobbies, don’t you think? What do they like to do? I’m sure we can find something for them. Does either of them like to cook?” Will thinks about running off without an answer. That would only result in the sales woman being even more suspicious of him, though, and so he just stands there.

The truth is that he has no idea what they like. He’s been living with them for 7 months almost; he moved in a few days after his 12th birthday. There had been a cake and two rather awkward hugs from Dana and Mulder. He doesn’t think Dana made the cake and he isn’t sure she likes cooking. He and Mulder made Christmas cookies last weekend. The cookies were burnt at the edges, some hard like little rocks. Others more dough than anything else. So he isn’t sure either of his parents is really happy in the kitchen.

“Not really. I mean they don’t really like to cook.” He finally says. Maybe he’s wrong, but buying a spatula seems wrong anyway. It’s not special enough.

“Books? Do they like to read?” The sales woman tries to be patient with him, William can tell, but she’d rather be somewhere else. That makes two of them.

Books. Books are strewn around the whole house. They’re basically everywhere; just the other day, Will found a book right next to the cereal box up in the cupboard. So he is certain that Mulder likes to read. But what kind of book?

“My dad likes to read.” The words feel strange coming out of his mouth. For years all he wanted was a father and now he has one. A real, live one who apparently likes to read. The word, however, is still so new. He still calls them Mulder and Dana, rather than mom and dad.

“He likes space, too.” It sounds stupid, he knows, like he is a small child. But in his mind his parents and his new life are still an unfinished puzzle. There are so many pieces he doesn’t know how to put it; he has no idea where they’ll fit.

“Oh, I think I have the perfect idea for you.” The sales woman puts her hand on his shoulder, a little too firmly, leading him away from the sparkling, expensive ornaments. She shoves a book into his hands and attempts to smile. Her lips barely turn upwards.

“Your dad will like this. Merry Christmas.” With that she just walks away, leaving Will standing there. He stares at the book: “Space Atlas: Mapping The Universe And Beyond”. Will feels his heart beat faster; he wants to read the book. Maybe it could be something he and Mulder read together. He turns the book and groans at the price. $35. All he has is a twenty that he saved from his six months of allowance. Dana and Mulder always tell him to just ask if he needs anything. How can he buy them a gift if he asks them for the money? Tears sting his eyes, but he refuses to let them fall. There’s no reason to be sad today, this year. Carefully he puts the book back on the pile. Will wishes he didn’t have to leave it behind. Maybe Mulder wouldn’t have liked it anyway, he thinks sadly, caressing the letters on the cover.

“William! Will!” It’s only been a couple of months, but he’d recognize his mother’s voice anywhere now. His lips curl upwards without a choice as he turns to them. The joy on his face is mirrored in theirs. It feels like they haven’t seen him in ages. Dana hugs him tightly; he is almost taller than her already, but right now he feels like a small child; safe, warm and happy.

“You find anything?” Mulder’s eyes roam the assorted novels and Will grins. He was right about this; Mulder loves to read, just like Will, and he knows this. A small, significant detail about his dad that he can store away in his mind.

“Maybe.” William shrugs. Maybe he can ask Dana for the money to buy the book for Mulder. And maybe Mulder can help him find something special for Dana. He knows her so well. Will watches his parents, standing close together, and in a way they are so mismatched. One tall, one small, one pale and one not. Yet somehow, when they whisper together, when their eyes join in a dance no one else has ever learned, Will knows that they’re perfectly matched. And he’s the product of that. He grins, laughs, at his own joke and his parents return the smile. They don’t need to know his little joke. They’re simply pleased that he’s happy.

“Ready to go home?” Dana asks and Will nods. He follows them and when he sees the sales woman, he slips his hand into Dana’s. The woman watches, still not sure what the whole thing has been about, and eventually turns away. William leaves his hand in Dana’s. Feeling strong. 


End file.
